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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fan · pound · cold · hide · rash · lash · spring · bowl

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. rash — a series
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. spring — a coil
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cold — an illness
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. rash — hasty
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pound — a weight
  21. spring — of water
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. rash — on the skin

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com